The Rain of the Gods
by MelliCorynne
Summary: When Hyrule disappears, what will become of those who fled to the mountaintops? This is a tale of what happened in between Ocarina of Time and Wind Waker.
1. Introduction

Okay, so... I realize this might not be so good, but I'm trying! Come on! This is an introduction type thing to my fanfic about the time in between Ocarina of Time and the Wind Waker. This introduction is told from a goddess's point of view, in case you can't tell, but the first chapter will change into a Hylian's point of view and go on from there... I realize this is extremely short, but trust me, when we get into what _really _happened, the chapters will be very long. Mwahaha.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Zelda. I only own the Hylians, Zoras, Kokiris, etc. that I decided to create for this fanfic. But of course, I don't own all of them - they are STILL races belonging to the Zelda franchise. How sad.

The clouds broke for the first time in months over the land of Hyrule, and at first, everyone seemed to peer up at it in surprise. No, many of them thought, it is only my imagination, playing tricks on me. However, as they stepped into the light, they saw their bodies light up, and they seemed to feel ashamed -- as if the darkness within could be seen in the light.

The dark creatures roaming around Hyrule Field disappeared as soon as the light hit the ground; even a few evil Hylians went running home in fear of a mere light. It had been so long since any of them had seen sunshine. It gave them hope, but at the same time, they knew something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong.

Ganon, in his dark chambers, roared at the mention of sunshine. "No," he said, standing and knocking over chairs and an assortment of other things. He ran outside, and was blinded for a few moments. "No!" He shouted at the sky, at us. "You can't stop me! I own the world now! There is no one to stop me! No one!" He looked out of place in the daylight; his red hair seemed to light up, as if it really were fire.

The few sages left alive proceeded to their temples to pray only heavier for help. But we had already found mercy for them -- we were going to answer their prayers, though it would not be in a very peaceful way. To soothe their worries, however, we told them in their dreams to head to the highest mountain they could find, and to bring those who deserved to go with them. Some heeded our warning and immediately left.

The sunlight spread until all of the clouds were gone, and then, we let it rain. The rain only drizzled at first, and again, the people of Hyrule stared up in wonder; how could it rain without clouds? This was the rain of the Gods. This was merciful rain.

After the sages and their chosen few reached the mountaintops, we created a barrier over Hyrule, leaving the mountaintops outside. It began to pour buckets of rain, and everyone stared up, now, at the water hitting the barriers and sliding down, as if they were contained in an invisible balloon. They were confused, at first, by this, but later became panicked.

In the peoples' panic, they ran about, trying to find a way to break the barrier, trying to find a safehaven. They began to murder each other out of panic - the bloodspill was too much to handle. Some committed suicide. I could hardly bear to look.

However, a few watched the sunlight and knew something terrible was going to happen - but it would help them. Somehow, they knew we were answering their prayers.

The first person to spot the water collecting outside the barrier was a five year old Hylian. He told his mother, but she didn't believe him. Soon, the water had grown to five feet outside the barrier, and the people of Hyrule simply watched it in a daze.

Finally, it grew to ten feet, twenty feet... until all of the barrier was covered by rain. It continued on and on until there was hardly a ray of sunshine hitting Hyrule.

And then we stopped time inside the barrier.

Hyrule was dead and gone - the mountaintops that were saved merely served as islands over the vast, new ocean. The handful of people allowed to these mountaintops started again and never told their children of Hyrule.

Soon, a peaceful land was born, and all of Hyrule was forgotten.


	2. Chapter One: A History Untold

I'm standing amidst dark, thick clouds, moving past me in perpetual fluidity; unceasing, rapid movements, past me in such a w

I stood amidst dark, thick clouds, moving past me in perpetual fluidity; unceasing, rapid movements, past me in such a way as if I was watching much happen in a short amount of time. The clouds began to clear just enough above Hyrule Field for me to see four large, ominous ghosts, lanterns in hand, streaming towards the green, forbidden area – the Kokiri Forest. I watched as a bright, red, circular cloud appeared above Death Mountain. As the water was sapped from Lake Hylia, I watched. Again, I watched as the doors to the temple above the graveyard in my hometown of Kakariko – the temple that was feared by all – opened to allow ghosts into the land below, to inhabit the previously peaceful graves. As the desert was consumed by monsters and hearts full of evil, I watched. The clouds shifted and changed color – from gray to a dark, ugly green – and suddenly, I could see a face, staring back at me in the clouds, eyes gleaming with pure evil, and –

"Hey," I heard. A ray of sunlight flashed across my eyes, and suddenly, I was awake. "Hey, you were groaning in your sleep again, so I decided to come wake you up."

"Don't do that again," I immediately replied, taking my journal from my bedside table and immediately jotting down what I'd dreamed of. I'd gone a bit further into the dream this time, as I'd never seen a man's face before in the clouds.

By this point, I'd been jotting down my dreams for around a month. At first the dreams were as simple as my figure, standing among the gray clouds, and feeling a sense of doom. Later on, each image would reach my mind, and they were all beginning to piece together – in such a way that, though I found it difficult to believe, I was starting to take seriously.

"What was it this time?" My little brother asked, at the foot of the bed, his eyes large and questioning. "What did you dream about?"

"Nothing," I said, ignoring him completely and snapping my journal closed, setting it back into the bedside table. Either way, I knew he would find out, as he had a habit of snooping in my journal when I wasn't around.

So began another day in my home; another wasteful day of watching and waiting and anticipating, wondering what these dreams were all about. As far as I was aware, each of these things had never happened, and most likely, wouldn't happen, but I couldn't help but feel like a nervous wreck every time I thought about it. What if these dreams actually meant something?

Pushing these thoughts to the back of my mind, I climbed out of bed, still clad in my nightgown, and made my way to the kitchen, where my two other sisters were sitting at the table, arms crossed over their chests, watching me intently as I passed.

"Where's breakfast? You're up late," Nalem, my older sister by four years, snapped at me, her lips pursed and her face ugly as usual. I glanced at my younger sister by two years – a mere sixteen years of age – as she stared at me for a moment, but instead turned her head to the door, watching it expectantly, as if waiting for another male prospect to come walking through the door. I allowed my eyes to turn from them both and shook my head, kneeling down to start a fire in the oven.

"Hey, guys?" I asked, without glancing back, "Could one of you run and get some cucco eggs from the lady next door? Last week we made an agreement with her that if we shared our herbs and potions, she'd equally share her cucco eggs. Her daughter's very sick and needs the potions."

Instead of moving, Nalem sat still in the chair. I could feel her eyes roll behind my back. "More charity?" She groaned, letting her bare feet shift against the dirty floor. "I thought you weren't going to just 'give away' potions anymore? How in the world are we going to afford to move to Castle Town if you keep on giving away potions?"

"I'm not giving them away," I quickly responded, grinding my teeth together in annoyance. "It's in exchange for cucco eggs. We can have breakfast every morning with this deal."

"Couldn't you just ask her for money?" My sixteen year old sister, Rynine, popped in, her gaze still fixed on the door as if she was in another land. "That way we could save it up for when we move to Castle Town. I can't _wait_ until we get there. I hear there are boys around every corner."

"Exactly. Marriage prospects for both you _and_ I. It seems as though Rileth doesn't care, as she has her own marriage prospect as it is. Not just that, but she's the only one of us who knows how to make potions. Perhaps she just wants to trap us here forever." Nalem stood from her chair and snorted. "Anyway, I'm hungry, since we've been waiting for her to get out of bed. I'll go get the cucco eggs."

I sighed heavily as Nalem left; when my older sister left, it felt like a weight being lifted from my shoulders. Ever since our parents had died, it seemed as though endless nagging and anger had come from both Nalem and Rynine. To be completely honest, Aeli, our youngest brother, was my only source of comfort in the home. Of course, he was ordered around just as much as I was, so I suppose it was only natural for the both of us to be in the same boat.

Far too quickly, Nalem was back with a dozen cucco eggs in hand, complaining about how "rude" and "no-good" the cucco lady was next door. I ignored her, shaking me head, knowing full well that Nalem was the rude one. Instead, I took the egg basket from her arm and placed it on the table, taking a few out and cooking them up for us.

As we ate, Nalem found things to nag about, Rynine found boys to talk about, and Aeli found lies to conjure. I sat in silence and ate, listening to nothing Nalem said, bits and pieces of what Rynine said, and to every word Aeli said. His fantastic "adventures" that he liked to make up were probably the most real part of my life at this point.

And then, Aeli made his worst mistake yet.

"And then, it was like in your dream, Rileth! Everything got all cloudy and dark, and suddenly I saw all these ghosts going towards Kokiri Forest and in the graveyard here and-"

"Dreams?" Nalem questioned, her eyebrows raising; this was information too good to pass up. "What kind of dreams?"

Before I could interrupt, Aeli continued. "Oh, Rileth has these recurring dreams! Has she not told you about them? She's had them for about a month ago, and they're all about doom falling on-"

"Aeli, that's enough," I said loudly, standing up from the table and taking my plate. "I don't feel like having my dreams discussed at the table this morning." Nalem looked as though she were about to protest, but instead, she continued to eat, her eyebrows raised in question.

"I'm going to Castle Town today," I announced as I set my plate on the counter to take out to clean later, "So I won't be making potions today. I hope one of you will run out and gather me some herbs from the village."

"What?" Nalem said, spinning around in her chair, her arms folded over her chest. "You haven't told us any of this stuff."

"I need ingredients," I said simply and flatly, looking back at her. "If you want to move to Castle Town, we have to make potions for money, and so we have to have ingredients for potions." This silenced Nalem for a moment, but it didn't, of course, silence Rynine.

"Oh, can I come, can I come? I promise I won't get in the way – last time I was there I met this fantastic boy and he showed me around the town… I just can't help but want to see him again! Could I please go? Please?" She stared at me with such intensity that I could hardly find it in my heart to say no.

"Well, I do need help carrying things back… just keep yourself out of trouble, alright? And I don't want you following me around everywhere. As long as we meet up at the fountain by sundown, it'll be fine."

"Yay!" Rynine seemed far too overjoyed by the circumstances. Immediately she ran into the bathroom to "freshen up." I took the plates we'd just finished using outside, scraped the remaining food into a small bowl just outside the house, and threw the plates in a tub of water we used to clean dishes. I supposed I'd let them soak there for a while – perhaps if I was lucky, Nalem might wise up and decide to do some cleaning for herself, for once. Most likely, I'd get yelled at the instant I came home for leaving the dishes in the tub.

I went inside and changed into my normal, plain green dress, reaching halfway down my shins and covering to the elbow. The weather would be a little hot on the way, true, but this was the cleanest dress I had at the time. I grabbed my basket and headed towards the door, but someone beat me to it.

"Okay, I'm ready to go!" I heard from behind the closed door. Rynine popped out in one, fluid bounce, her blonde curls jolting up and down as she smiled up at me. "Do I look alright?" She asked, smoothing her dress and tapping her shoes together. "I just can't wait till we get there!"

It had become pretty apparent, lately, that Rynine had never had a proper "raising" by true parents, to speak of. Our parents had died shortly after Aeli was born, when Rynine was around six and I was around nine. Nalem was thirteen at the time, and to tell the surprising truth, she wasn't so bad back then. I'm sure losing them so young, but being the oldest, forced a bit of responsibility that she wasn't ready for. She dumped most of these responsibilities on me, and called herself "overseeing" everything. By the time she was sixteen she nagged far too much for her to keep any marriage prospect for any length of time, and had become the Nalem that I knew that day. Nalem was busy with her own life, while I was busy raising Aeli, and Rynine, in the middle of all of this, begged for attention from every place she could find it. Fortunately, and unfortunately, by the time she was twelve, she was a little "well-developed" for her age, and male eyes of every age were following her everywhere she went. By the time she was thirteen, she had already obtained ten proposals, all of whom she'd said no to, vowing to find her "true love". As time passed, her idea of "true love" became less and less romantic and more and more physical. She was constantly unsatisfied by the amount of attention she was getting and began to seek it from every pretty male face she could possibly find.

At first I did the best I could to prevent such a thing from happening. Truthfully, however, Nalem loved having men over – she figured one of them would eventually straighten up and ask her to marry him. Every man in Kakariko – no, in Hyrule – knew better than that. Long ago, though, I'd learned not to interfere; fighting with Nalem and Rynine as a team was like participating in a bullfight, stupid and dangerous.

So, I kept my mouth shut and did my best to ignore everything Rynine said until we reached Hyrule Castle Town. With that being a two-hour walking trip across Hyrule Field, this was no easy feat. My only source of relief was when Rynine would shush to complete silence when passing a random stranger, to thoroughly inspect and pass judgment on him or her. Unsurprisingly, Rynine was not only shallow with men, but was entirely too critical of other girls. Any flaw was immediately recognized and criticized in whispers, even on girls who seemed flawless. She'd find a flaw. Once she'd claimed that she could just tell how rude one particularly pretty girl was. "Conceited with her own good looks," she said, shaking her head and tsking, unknowing of just how hypocritical she was.

Once we'd finally reached Castle Town, Rynine immediately separated from me and went bouncing through the crowded market, whereas I stopped at the stands, picking out fruits, vegetables, and herbs that didn't – and wouldn't – grow within the confines of Kakariko Village. Some of these ingredients came straight from Lake Hylia, Zora's Domain, and even Kokiri Forest. Picking up a particularly strange-looking mushroom, I heard a voice behind me.

"Whatever are you doing in Hyrule Castle Town, Rileth?" I paused for a moment, odd-shaped mushroom still in hand, and turned to the source of the voice. There stood my "fiancé" of sorts, Phiasri.

"Surely you're not coming to visit me," He sighed in his normal arrogant tone, taking the mushroom from my hand. "Or perhaps you're here for this… mushroom? Whatever use would you have for such a thing?"

"Oh, many uses," a dark voice spoke from behind the stand. I whipped back around to see an old lady, hunched over, face covered by her hood, inching forward. "Many, many uses, my dear young ones. If concocted in a potion and given in the right amount of time, it just may prevent you from becoming a monster, but if you use it mistakenly… you very well may die." The old lady laughed, her cold, harsh voice hurting my ears.

"Nonsense," Asri, as all of his friends called him, said, turning the mushroom about in his hands. "I have no doubt that eating the mushroom raw may cause death, but Hylians simply don't turn into monsters. It's a myth. The closest thing we Hylians have seen to monsters are those fish people that pollute our Lake Hylia. How disgusting," he fnihed, his voice degrading and devoid of emotion.

Asri most certainly wasn't my "choice" for a fiancé, by any means. He and I had been arranged for marriage since birth, and to say the least, I didn't appreciate it at all. He was a racist, uncaring bastard, and I didn't want him near my family or to raise my children. Yet here I was, gathering as much money as I could to move to Castle Town to make my sisters happy, putting myself right in danger's way.

I smoothed my dress and reached in my basket, taking my coin purse out. "How much?" I asked. I could almost feel the old woman smiling at me from underneath her hood. "Twenty rupees," she said, and I placed the amount, though expensive for my budget, on the table, and took the mushroom in defiance.

"You're actually going to use that thing?" Asri groaned, watching me place it in my basket. He snorted and shook his head. "You just wasted twenty rupees – rupees you insist on making from making those silly, useless potions of yours. If you would only accept my money and move here, and finally we would marry, and you'd never have to worry about rupees again."

"Nonsense," I said this time, in a fashion similar to his. "I'll marry you when I'm ready. Now if you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to."

With that, I turned down the back alley, basket in tow, unsure of where, exactly I was heading. I was most certainly, however, heading away from him.

I had never really been down the back alley – Nalem had always warned us of just how dangerous it could be – so these surroundings were all relatively new to me. Unlabeled shops left and right caused me to look, with caution, to see exactly what was sold there. It was a little suspicious, to be completely honest.

Finally, I came upon a window full of books, and was unable to resist the temptation that drew me there. I opened the creaky door with a bit of difficulty, as a deep, rusty bell rang above me, indicating my entrance.

No one was around. I assumed the owner of the store was in the back, so I took it upon myself to explore, to look through the assortment of books. What I found next, however, was not something I had expected.

The cover entitled "Hyrule's True History" caught my eye, and I picked the book up from the shelf. The book was apparently written by someone named Impa, a name that rang familiar in my mind for just a moment, though I pushed it to the back of my mind. I sat down at a dusty table and opened the book out of curiosity.

Link. A hylian boy named Link, raised as a Kokiri and forced into an extraordinary destiny. I read with intensity, judging it as a fantasy book from the first few chapters – and outsider's account on this boy's adventures through the Great Deku Tree, whom I hadn't seen but had read about in books my parents had read to me, through Dodongo's Cavern, where the legendary Gorons found food, and through the stomach of Jabu-Jabu, a great whale in the depths of Zora's Fountain. This young boy, of Aeli's age, did all of this because of a prophecy that Princess Zelda had (in the back of my mind, I wondered if it were legal to use her as a fictional character, though she was here, in Hyrule, in living flesh) about a man named Ganondorf who swore allegiance to her father, the king.

The king had not listened to his daughter, as she was a mere ten years of age, and so upon meeting Link, she matched him up with her prophecy and sent him on a quest to retrieve the three stones – the Kokiri's Emerald, Goron's Ruby, and Zora's Sapphire. Once he retrieved them, he returned to Hyrule Castle, only to see Zelda galloping away in her caretaker's tow, as the young girl threw back an ocarina for him to take.

The boy grabbed the ocarina, after a short encounter with this villain named Ganondorf, and took it upon himself to go to the Temple of Time, place the stones on the pedestal, and place the Song of Time with this mysterious blue ocarina. The back wall to this Temple suddenly opened, and behind the door lay the Master Sword. The boy made his way up to the steps, and gazed upon this legendary blade, and then…

"Ah, literature in its truest form." I jumped at the voice behind me, snapping the book closed and freezing in place. "Interesting read?"

"I intend to buy it," I immediately replied, hoping this shopkeeper wouldn't think I was trying to read it in its entirety in the store, so as to cheat him out of some money. "I began to read with every intention of buying it-"

"Oh, miss, I believe you're mistaken as to where, exactly, you are."

I worked up the courage to turn around, though my heart felt as though it were jumping clear into my throat; I should have never visited the back alley, I should have stayed in the main market…

"You're in a library, miss. Reading books without buying them is what we specialize in." I turned to see a man, around my age, his black hair sticking up in all directions, his bright green eyes peering down at me. "Unless, of course, you don't return them in time – in which case we kindly ask you pay a late fee."

"Oh," was the only syllable I could muster. "So you… lend out books?"

"Why yes, if you're a member of the library. Are you, Mrs…?"

"Rileth. And just 'Miss'," I quickly responded. I refused to be mistaken for a married woman. "And no, I'm not a member… how much is it…?" Visions of hundreds of rupees to belong to such a club like this ran through my head, but his next words caught me by surprise."

"Oh, nothing at all. You just give us your real address, your name, and you bring your book back on time. If you fulfill those requirements, then it'll always cost you nothing. If you don't, then… well, I might stop by your house and confiscate everything you own."

I blinked up at him, my eyes suspicious. After a few moments of staring back and forth like this, he winked. He was kidding. I thought.

"Anyway, you can take that book home with two others if you just write down your name and address for me, ma'am. Simple as that." He placed the form on the dusty table, grabbing a quill and pot of ink from his desk. I quickly did so, and he retreated behind the desk, my paper in tow, sticking it into a drawer full of others. "Kakariko Village?" He questioned without looking at me. "You'll definitely have to commit to get them back here in time, but I'll trust you."

"Oh, don't worry," I said, my eyes locking on the cover of my closed book, "I'm in Castle Town at least once a week."

He laughed as he slammed the drawer shut, glancing over at me. "Yeah, never has been a lot in Kakariko. It's almost necessary – and unfortunate – to have to travel here all the time. What's your reason?"

"Oh, I'm a potion maker out that way. I have to head this way to get ingredients."

He nodded, and we sat in silence for a few moments, before I finally stood to leave. "I'm sorry, but I must be heading back – I told my sister I'd meet her at sundown." I took my book to the desk, and he wrote something in the back and handed it to me.

"I'll see you in two weeks, Miss Rileth," He said, his smile unfading.

"I'll see you then, too, Mr…?"

"Adarin. And don't bother with the mister."

"Alright, Adarin. I'll see you."

"Goodbye, Miss Rileth."

With that, I turned and left the library, a new, unexpected addition to my basket, a new, unexpected friend of sorts in my life. A friendly face like that was always a refreshment from my everyday monotony.

Hey guys... finally, first chapter has been posted! I realize the plot is not terribly stepped into quite yet, but I have to set the mood and the characters. Anyway, review!


	3. Chapter Two: Fiction in its Truest Form

Ugh, I've done everything I can to edit that first chapter and it's still putting all that weird stuff at the top, so the firs

Ugh, I've done everything I can to edit that first chapter and it's still putting all that weird stuff at the top, so the first sentence is repeated, or something. I have no clue why it does that.

Anyway, on to the next chapter!

As usual, Rynine was late to meet me at the fountain, and as usual, she showed up with a different boy in tow, giggling and smiling and touching his shoulder in such a flirty way that I felt somewhat like throwing up. She pretended not to spot me, and instead hung by another building, holding his hand and staring up at him; he apparently thought she'd come to the town by herself, a lie she no doubt told to impress him. I twirled the basket around in my hand and tried not to look as she leaned in close, her voice low and intimate, her smile fading. I kept trying not to look as my little sister leaned in even closer and planted a long, passionate kiss on this man's lips – a man that she'd known only for today, undoubtedly.

"Goodbye, my dear Tathryn," I heard this strange man say, gripping her hand and smiling hopefully at her. I rolled my eyes. Another fake name? Apparently she didn't want it to get around that she got around to every man in Hyrule Castle. Well, kissed around, anyway.

"Goodbye, darling," She said, and he retreated into the back alley as she turned to me, her face flustered, her expression overjoyed.

"I think today was the best day of my life," she said.

"You say that everyday."

It took a while for me to pick the book back up again, since as soon as I got home, I was yelled at for not washing the dishes before I left. I knew that it was a dumb decision to leave those there; Nalem acted as though a bit of work would kill her. I daresay I hid my book in my bedside table, so as not to cause a disturbance in the household. Goddesses forbid I have a hobby – besides taking care of my siblings and cleaning up after them, of course.

Rynine talked my ear off nonstop about this mysterious man who she could barely remember the name of in Hyrule Castle Town, begging me to make a trip back. Though the idea of returning was strangely tantalizing, I refused, as I needed to finish my book before I took it back. However, opportunities for reading were growing slim, as it seemed everyone in Kakariko Village was sick this particular week. It could have had something to do with the fact that they all ate at Mrs. Jyni's cookout – I even knew better than that. Trying to find time to read in between all of this was completely impossible.

Finally, however, a full week after I'd taken the book, I found time to read it. This "sickness" of sorts had finally come to a close, with Mrs. Jyni being my last customer, and the house was clean. It was just after dinner, and Rynine had offered to wash the dishes, as a cute boy was standing around outside, when I found this extraordinary slot of free time that I wasn't quite sure what to do with. Retreating to my room, I locked the door and retrieved the book from the bedside table.

Where was I? I flipped through the book until something seemed unfamiliar, flipped back a few pages, and found where I'd left off. Link walked up to the master sword, placed his hands on it, and pulled upwards as hard as he could, and…

I found it particularly strange that the book wasn't anywhere near the finish quite yet, but had pushed it to the back of my mind. As shock overcame me at the next series of events, it became quite clear to me why I wasn't quite finished. Apparently, when Link had taken the master sword, with every intention of defeating the villain, he instead opened up the Sacred Realm to this villain so that he might enter and take a piece of the sacred triforce.

Over the course of seven years, this hero known as Link had disappeared, and Ganondorf had taken it upon himself to wreak havoc over Hyrule. I read on, and suddenly, my eyes fell across an illustration that was far too familiar for me to remain comfortable.

Those dark, gray clouds. They were like the ones in my dreams. A chill ran up my spine and I paused on the page for a moment, entranced by what I was seeing. This wasn't possible. I passed it as de ja vu and continued reading.

What I read next, however, was just as shocking as the illustration. The forest was haunted by ghosts. The cloud above Death Mountain had become a bright red color, and the historical monster inside, Volvagia, had risen again. Lake Hylia almost completely dried up, as the Zoras were frozen within their own homes. The doors to the Shadow Temple opened and allowed free reign of the ghosts into the Kakariko graveyard. The desert was overridden by monsters, and two witches dominated the temple, annihilating any and everyone in their way.

This was touching far too close to home – each of these descriptions were exactly as my dreams had told. Without reading another word, I snapped the book shut, and left my home unattended, heading straight for Castle Town.

I barely reached the gate to Hyrule Castle Town in time to cross, as the guard was outside, prepping the gate for the night. "Wait!" I called out, and he glared at me as I stumbled across the bridge, breathing heavily. "I need in there!"

"Hurry up," he merely muttered, and I immediately recognized him as the man who'd called my sister 'Tathryn' just a week ago. Smirking, I continued through the dimly lit town, finding my way through the back alley and back towards the library.

I approached the library only to find a locked door and a black, unlit window, the curtains pulled shut. "Hey!" I called through the door, my book tucked under my arm, "I have a book to return! Hey, let me in!" I pounded on the door with my other arm, praying Adarin would hear me. "Hey, seriously!"

The door opened, my hand still in the air to knock on it, and Adarin stood in the doorway, his expression alarmed. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, I interrupted.

"What in Hyrule did you mean by literature in its truest form?"

He paused for a minute, his expression changing from that of alarmed to a calm, amused smirk, peering down at me from the doorway. "Did you finish the book?"

"Answer my question," I demanded.

"You look out of breath. Why don't you come on in? I'm making some tea before I go to bed." He moved out of the doorframe and held the door open for me, and though I felt impatient and annoyed, I entered the dark library.

Adarin led me down the stairs with nothing but his candlelight, no words, no answers, no indications. As we reached the bottom of the stairs, we approached a brightly lit kitchen of sorts, a pot boiling on the stove.

"Answer my question," I repeated as he walked over to the stove, far too slowly and far too calmly.

"You should answer mine first," He said, glancing back at me as he removed the pot from the stove, placing it on a rag on his dusty table. "Did you finish the book?"

"Well, no, but-"

"I think finishing the book is in order before you draw any crazy conclusions." He took a cup from his cabinet and placed it on the table in front of me, filling it with hot tea. "Trust me, you'll be glad you did."

"I don't think you understand," I continued, fighting my impatience and gritting my teeth together like I had with my sisters at home. "This book is…"

"Is what?" He looked up at me as he poured his own cup of tea and sat down across from me at the dusty table, smirking slightly and pointing to the chair I was standing behind. "What is it?"

I bit my lip; it was almost as if he could tell I had crazy dreams that related to this book. There was no way he would believe me. I'd come all this way only to make a fool of myself. I'd wanted a question answered so quickly that I'd never even thought of what I was really asking.

"Read it," he said as he allowed his smirk to disappear behind his cup, taking a sip. "And try the tea. It's quite good, if I say so myself."

I shook my head, placing the book on the table, my brow furrowed. "This is just so frustrating," I said after a moment, giving a deep sigh.

"Just finish the book. Listen, you don't even have to go home. Just stay here, finish the book, and then you can ask me all the questions you need to, alright?" He placed his cup of tea back on the table and leaned back in his chair, watching me. "Just finish the book."

I nodded with some difficulty, finally taking a sip of the tea – which, surprisingly, was pretty good – and stood from the table. "Do you mind if I take that candle with me? I can go read in the library, so you can sleep."

"No, that's not necessary. The library is unlit and scary at night, trust me – there's a reason my living space is below the library, not above the library. I prefer not to look out into the street at night. Drink your tea, make yourself comfortable, and read until you're finished." He pointed to a couch over on the other end of the wall. "You're welcome to sleep over tonight, too, unless that's against your standards – but I can promise I'm not hitting on you."

"Oh, I know," I snapped, and I stood to make my way over to the couch. This was the best place for me to sleep for the night – where else was I supposed to go? Asri's? Sadly, I felt safer here at Adarin's than at Asri's for the night, and I didn't even know Adarin very well quite yet. However, I felt a little uncomfortable as he grabbed my elbow before I could reach the couch.

"No, that's my bed," he said, and I stared at him for a moment, confused and somewhat offended. Did he expect me to sleep on the floor? I supposed such shouldn't bother me but I couldn't help but feel strange. "For the night, anyway," he continued. He pointed towards the closed door on the right side of the room. "You'll be sleeping in my bed. I don't think I could allow a lady to sleep on a beaten up old librarian's couch like that." He smiled at me, and I frowned back at him, feeling thankful but uncomfortable; as if my presence here was nothing but a hindrance.

"I'm sorry," I said, shaking my head. "I can really take the couch, it's fine… I'm sorry that I ran over here without thinking first. I—"

"Don't mention it. Just go right on in there, make yourself comfortable, and finish that book, alright?" He nodded to the door, and I nodded back, walking over to it slowly.

I opened the door to a dark room. A chill ran up my spine. I couldn't even see what was in here – how could I possibly expect to stay here? Much less, I couldn't read without candlelight. I turned back around to tell Adarin that I still needed that candle when-

I was pushed to the ground by a giant, scary brown animal with a great mouth and great, sharp teeth bearing down on me, ready to rip out my heart at any moment now. I screamed in fear, closed my eyes tightly, and suddenly, felt something wet against my face.

"That's Growls," Adarin said without looking up. "Sorry bout that. He gets a little too friendly sometimes." I dared to open up my eyes again to see a big, brown dog licking my face clean, panting all the while. I pushed him off and stood, straightening out my dress and pretending it all had never happened.

"How in the world," I said, picking up my book from the ground, as I had dropped it in the "attack", "do you keep your books from being drooled all over?"

Adarin laughed, but didn't respond, as his nose was already buried deep within a book. Growls (what an appropriate name) bounded over to his master and jumped up on the couch with him, placing his head on his lap and staring at the book as if he wanted to read it, too.

Without another word, I took the candle from the table in the kitchen and retreated back into his bedroom, lighting it up so that I could see a bed, a bedside table, and a chest of drawers just next to it. I closed the door behind me and locked it (partly from habit, partly from suspicion), and climbed into his surprisingly comfortable bed. I supposed it was from Growls hopping up and down on it all the time.

I placed the candle next to the bed and buried my own nose back into the book. Ganondorf had brought havoc onto all of these temples and lives of all of Hyrule. There seemed to be no turning back. He led with an iron fist and a cold heart, killing any and all who stood in his way. Amidst all of this, Princess Zelda had disappeared.

I paused for a moment, biting my lip. Was this book, and my dream, perhaps a prophecy? Would something like this happen in the future? Was the world as I knew it destined to fall? Adarin's words rang in my head. "Just finish the book."

With expectations of reading a prophecy, I continued reading the book. After seven years of cruel ruling over Hyrule, the Hero from before – the ten year old who pulled the master sword from the temple of time – had returned as a seventeen year old, prepped and ready for battle. Slowly, he took on each temple and each challenge that Ganondorf set forth. He came to discover that he, too, owned a piece of the triforce – the Triforce of Courage, whereas the Triforce of Wisdom belonged to Zelda, and the Triforce of Power belonged to none other than Ganondorf. Finally, Princess Zelda revealed herself to Link, as she'd been a friend and mentor of his all along in disguise, and revealed to him that Ganondorf intended on taking both pieces of their triforce. Just as she told him this, Ganondorf abducted her.

Link met Ganondorf's challenge in his castle – standing in the place just where Hyrule Castle used to be. Link took him down, and Ganondorf, with his last breath, took down the castle. Link and Zelda retreated, only to meet a reincarnation of Ganondorf in the remains – Ganon.

With difficulty, Link defeated Ganon with the power of the sages he'd acquired through all of his trials throughout the temples, and Hyrule seemed to be at peace again. With that, Zelda took the Ocarina of Time from Link, and with Ganondorf's power locked away within the Sacred Realm, returned time to as it was before – before Link slept for seven years. He was ten again, Hyrule was saved, and no one knew what had happened with Ganondorf.

Though it should have made sense after I finished the book, it didn't. I placed the book on Adarin's bedside table, grabbed the candle, and burst out the door.

"Now, answer my question!"

Adarin and his dog stirred quickly, snapping back into reality and looking up at me in confusion. "I'm sorry," he said slowly, yawning. "I've slept since then. What was your question again?"

"What did you mean by 'literature in its truest form'?" I stood in front of the couch as he sat up, leaning against the back and sighing, patting the seat next to him.

"Well," he said, as if he were prepping for a long story, "What do you think I meant?"

"I don't know, that's why I'm asking you!"

"Well doesn't it sound believable?" He asked, and a slight rush of relief ran through me to see that I wasn't the only one to have believed everything I read in that book. "If you really look at Hyrule, if you do your research, if you look these things up… it all seems real."

"But how could it have happened? We would have heard about it, surely, there's no way something like this could have been kept a secret for very long." I looked at him questioningly.

"Don't you see? They went back in time, to the time before anyone even knew about Link. Or Ganondorf, for that matter. The problem was fixed before it even happened, in a way."

"So this has already happened?" I asked, blinking at him and sitting, watching him intently for more answers. "This has happened before?"

"In a certain perspective, yes-"

"Certain perspective?"

"In another perspective, it would have been happening now."

I blinked at him again, soaking in the information, continuing to bite my lip.

"So are you ready to return a book now, Miss Rileth?"

"Yes, I am."


	4. Chapter Three: Home in Kakariko

The next morning hit me like a stick against a drum, waking up so quickly that I wasn't sure, exactly, what was going on

The next morning hit me like a stick against a drum, waking up so quickly that I wasn't sure, exactly, what was going on. I assumed, immediately, that I was in my own bed, and turned to the bedside table out of habit, retrieving what I thought was my journal and opening it to review the latest dream I had. What I discovered instead, however, was a journal that wasn't mine, with writing that wasn't mine, but… This was Adarin's journal. Though I was invading his privacy, I continued to read, anyway.

It was quite a shock to discover that he had the same dreams that I'd had. No wonder he found this story as believable as I did. However, he'd seemed to be having these dreams longer than I did – his dates went as far back as three years ago.

How could we have been having the same dreams? I lay in bed, wondering about this for a long time, until I heard a knock on the door. "Hey," I heard Adarin say from behind the door, "I cooked you some breakfast. You should come on out and talk to me about the dream you had last night." His voice sounded as though he was smiling.

"I'll be out in a second," I called, opening the bedside table as quietly as I could and placing the book back in its place. I slipped my shoes on, made his bed, unlocked the door, and entered the brightly lit kitchen again.

"What do you mean by dreams?" I faked, sitting down at the table where a plate full of food and a fresh cup of tea was waiting on me.

He smiled at me, sitting across from me and shoveling some eggs into his mouth. "You wouldn't have overreacted this much," he said, watching my expression intently, "if you didn't feel it to be a work of fiction. So what made you believe it?"

"Dreams," I said, and he nodded without a word.

"How long have you been having them?" He asked after a while, sloshing his tea around in the cup and looking down at it. "And how detailed are they?"

"I've only had them for a few months," I said, taking a sip of my own tea, "and they're always about the same thing. Clouds, ghosts in the forest, cloud above death mountain-"

"Empty Lake Hylia, Shadow Temple doors wide open, and desert 'monsters'?" He finished, nodding at me. "That's what I had around a year."

"Is that right?" I leaned forward in my chair interestedly. "What else have you dreamed of…?"

"Ganondorf's face in the clouds. And of course, Link's inevitable win and Ganondorf's containment in the Sacred Realm. After that, I see time go back, I see Link leave to another place, and time to remain peaceful in Hyrule for a while… but it seems that the imbalance in the triforce, since Link no longer possesses the triforce of courage-"

"Back up," I interrupted, holding my hand out. "Link doesn't have the Triforce of Courage? Imbalance?"

"For Ganondorf to remain locked inside the Sacred Realm, the two remaining pieces of the Triforce must remain strong against his piece to prevent him from coming back. The Triforce of Courage must be actually possessed. Two years after Link came back to normal time, he fell into another world, according to my dreams, and when he left, he left the Triforce of Courage in Hyrule, shattered into nine pieces and scattered throughout Hyrule." He said seriously, as though he'd thought all of this out for years. Well, of course he had. He'd been having these dreams for seven years.

"So Ganondorf is coming back?"

"It's likely, yes," he said, leaning back into his chair and shoveling some more eggs into his mouth. "I wouldn't doubt it happening for a moment. So far, all of my dreams have been somewhat true, so I wouldn't be surprised. Besides, have you seen a random Hylian kid clad in Kokiri clothing?"

"Well, no, but I haven't been outside much, either. Also, how do you know, exactly, that we're in that time now? That could have been hundreds of thousands of years ago." I watched him intently, feeling as though I could really discuss something like this with someone besides my kid brother.

"I've been 'outside', as you say, through the Kokiri Forest, in fact, and I haven't seen a thing. And how I'm sure it's this time is because of the fact that Link left two years after he returned time to normal – I know this from my dreams. And with the Triforce of Courage shattered, it won't take Ganondorf long at all to realize what kind of power he has."

I took my first bite of egg, realizing just how hungry I was, but it was no time for talking. "Okay," I said, "Then how do you know all of this is true? I mean, sure, we share the same dreams, and someone happened to write a book about it, but what if it's all just dreams and a book?"

"Take a look at the author of that book," Adarin said, pointing at the book, still on the table from the night before, rather calmly. "Do you recognize the name?"

"Impa," I said simply, staring at the name. "It sounds familiar, but-"

"Zelda's caretaker. She's the last of the remaining Shiekah and the closest to the Royal Family. Do you really think she'd write a piece of fiction like that? I've also heard that the Royal Family has been in a bit of a tight fit lately, now that Zelda's having more prophecies."

"So even Zelda's having them…"

"Oh, Miss Rileth, I'm not so sure if she's been having these dreams so much as she _experienced_ ours. I'm almost certain that if she is the possessor of the Triforce of Wisdom, she remembers all of these events just as clearly as Link does."

"But, prophecies?"

"That Ganondorf will return."

We finished breakfast in silence, and to be polite, I washed the dishes outside afterward, so he wouldn't have to keep up with me anymore. I returned my book and thanked him for allowing me to stay.

"You're leaving?" He asked. He seemed somewhat disappointed.

"Why yes," I said, bowing politely. "I have two sisters and a younger brother to take care of at home, and I guarantee they're all near starving right now."

He watched me for a moment. "But I just found someone who actually shares the same visions as me."

For some reason, I found myself blushing. "I'm sorry," I said, "But I certainly need to return home."

"Home is Kakariko Village?"

"Yes."

"Will you be back soon?"

"I suppose I'll need potion ingredients soon."

"How soon is soon?" Adarin watched me intently, as though he didn't want me to leave at all. As a matter of fact, I could tell he didn't want me to leave.

"Two weeks."

"Too long."

"I'm sorry."

"Listen, if we don't start thinking and collaborating and dreaming now, we're going to get sucked into this Ganondorf plot before we even know what's going on. We need to stick together." He crossed his arms over his chest and stood in the doorway in a similar fashion that he had the night before. "You got an extra bed, or couch, or something?"

"Well, no, but…"

"Then I'll sleep on the floor. Mind if I bring Growls with me?"

I was completely speechless. Adarin was inviting himself back to my home – and let me tell you, I didn't think mixing Adarin, our shared dreams, and the fate of Hyrule with my sister was such a good idea. Nalem could very well be Ganondorf.

However, it might be entertaining, at least for a little while, to see how they'd react to a random stranger. And though I fought the thought completely, it might be kind of nice to have Asri thinking I had another male interest, though it wasn't the case at all.

"Alright," I said after a while. "Just bring some food, or something, we're kind of poor." I smiled up at him, and he shrugged.

"Well, I haven't got a lot of food, but I've got a lot of rupees. How bout I buy us some groceries?"

"Sounds good to me."

My return home was as shocking as I'd hoped it would be. First, Nalem came running out the door, yelling at me for leaving for a night, what was I ever thinking, and Aeli trailed quickly after, his arms wide open for a hug, his expression confused. Rynine simply stood at the doorway angrily, as if she knew I went to Hyrule Castle Town for a night without her.

"I've brought someone with me," I said before Nalem could continue nagging me to death. "He's out in the woods with his dog."

"Asri?" Nalem questioned, her expression suddenly chipper. "You brought Asri? Is he going to take us to live in Castle Town? Is this why you've brought him?"

"No, he's a librarian named Adarin, and he's going to be staying with us for a while, so I'd appreciate it if you-"

"You dirty slut," she spat, glaring directly into my eyes. "You left after supper last night to go sleeping with some man you met in Hyrule Castle, didn't you? You show up this morning expecting him to stay here. You are so very wrong, Rileth." The way my name slid off her tongue was not unlike a snake's hiss. "I am the head of this household. You follow what I say. And this man is not allowed in this house."

"Is there a problem?" Adarin approached the two of us, his dog in tow as well as some… fresh game? He'd caught some meat for us?

As Nalem's eyes turned to Adarin, I watched her expression change entirely. Apparently, she found him attractive, because her attitude flipped entirely from the nagging bitch she was to a sweet, hospitable woman caring for the house in my leave. "Oh, not at all!" She said, a thick, heavy, and fake Kakarikan accent slipping into her voice like poison slipped into an afternoon tea. "I was just welcoming her back. And who might you be?"

"Oh, I'm just one of Miss Rileth's friends," he said, nodding to me. "But don't worry, I'm not going to eat you out of house and home. I brought a fair share of groceries for all of us for the month, and if we need more, I brought some rupees."

The month? Did he really intend on staying that long? I gritted my teeth and stared at him, crossing my arms over my chest.

"One of Rileth's friends, is that right?" Nalem looked at me, raising her eyebrows, as though when he said friends, our issue was resolved entirely, when in fact, Nalem wanted this man for herself. "Well, any friend of Rileth is a friend of mine. My name is Nalem. I'll show you to your new bed." She took his hand and led him into the house, where Rynine was still standing, her mouth gaping open in awe.

Was Adarin all that cute? Well, looking back at him, I supposed so, but I had seen so many attractive men come to the house for the sake of my little sister that I supposed I'd forgotten what an attractive man looked like. I was so used to seeing them that it was no special thing when he and I became friends. In between my two sisters, I suddenly felt inadequate, as if I was an outsider, again, in my own household.

We all entered the house, Aeli trailing in behind me, and already, Nalem had seated Adarin at the table and was preparing him some tea. Rynine was sitting directly next to him, watching him from underneath her thick, seductive eyelashes. "I'm Rynine," she said in her sultry voice, and Adarin simply nodded.

Aeli tugged at my dress. "Please, Rileth," he said quietly, "Please fix us some food. Nalem's been cooking for us ever since you've been gone and it's been just gross. Please, cook for us."

"Aeli, I heard that!" Nalem snapped, her 'accent' disappearing almost immediately. Adarin snickered.

"You cook, Miss Rileth?" He asked, looking up at me, somewhat surprised, and I nodded. "Well, I hate to say it, but I cooked for you this morning, so you owe me a dinner, too." He winked up at me, and I felt my face flush a little.

No, please. Not again. I can't blush in front of this man.

"No problem," I retaliated, "even though, if you consider it, you'll owe me an entire month's stay at your place once this is over."

He smiled up at me. "Whatever you say."

I caught Rynine's eye as I made my way over to the stove. For some reason, she was glaring at me so intently that I had trouble believing she wasn't burning me alive with her eyes. She shook her head at me in disgust as I continued working on the stove, preparing a decent meal for my family… plus Adarin.

I put together quite a decent meal, thanks to all of the foods that Adarin bought us, complete with a cake for dessert. Table conversation consisted mostly of Nalem asking Adarin questions of all sorts, Adarin shooting back one word answers, Rynine watching Adarin with googly eyes, and Aeli whining about Nalem's food while I was gone. I sat in silence, feeling somewhat out of place as usual, but Adarin kept watching me, as if he were surprised I was like this around my family.

As he finished his last bite, he complimented continuously on my cooking, but before he and I could have anywhere near a conversation, Nalem had taken hold of his hand again and was leading him into Aeli's room, where he would be staying for the night. Aeli would be sleeping in my bed. No doubt, according to Nalem's thinking, this was to prevent "me from sneaking into his room", but leaving herself available, or something dumb like that.

"Actually," Adarin said once there was an eventual break in Nalem's constant chatter, "I'd like a few words with Miss Rileth, if you don't mind."

"Oh," Nalem said awkwardly, standing in Aeli's doorway, where Adarin was sitting on the bed. After a few moments, she finally called me into the room. "Rileth!" She yelled from across the house. I tucked my journal back into my bedside table and made my way into Aeli's room.

Adarin signaled for me to sit next to him, and I did so, while Nalem stood in the doorway. "In private?" He asked after a moment, watching her nervously.

"Oh, of course," she said, still standing in the doorway. She watched us for a few more moments before finally turning around, walking away. "Oh, of course, I'll give you two your time to chat."

Adarin stood and closed the door behind her, leaning against it and giving a heavy breath. "I don't know how much longer I can handle your sisters," he whispered in one deep sigh, almost as though he was talking to himself moreso than me.

"I know what you mean," I said, and he backed away from the door, taking his seat next to me again.

"So, I've been thinking even more. Why would we be getting all these dreams, and no one else? It seems to me like we're being warned, or something, don't you think?"

"Warned? I suppose so, but how are we supposed to stop Ganondorf, especially without Link and the Triforce of Courage?"

He didn't respond; instead, he watched me with an expression somewhat like shock. "You're finally catching on," he said, "to the severity of this situation. You're becoming my favorite dream-buddy yet."

"Your only dream-buddy," I corrected, laughing slightly, "so you'd better get used to my thought processes right now."

He laughed, too, and we sat for a moment, smiling at each other, before he continued. "So I was thinking… if we were able to get our hands on the pieces of the Triforce of Courage, do you think we'd be able to actually do something about all of this?"

"Maybe," I muttered, shaking my head. "I'm not so sure. Wouldn't you think an actual piece of Triforce would be issued to someone, say, legendary? Link was destined to be a hero. I'm sure neither of us were - unless you're hiding a lot of deep dark secrets from me."

He laughed again. "I agree with you there, I don't think we're the next heroes, by any means. But we can definitely try, at least, since we're the only ones that we know of, besides a little bit of the Royal Family, that know what's going on. Maybe we can collect these pieces and hang onto them, just in case Link does come back. We'd help him out, anyway."

"And if not," I continued, "we can keep Ganondorf's hands off of them."

"Precisely."

"So where do we start?" I asked, watching Adarin as his expression became deeply serious.

"I don't know. But I suppose we can start with where we are. It's likely that the nine triforce pieces were split up into completely different places of Hyrule. I'm not sure where, exactly, or people will actually be in possession of them, but I figured we can at least start our search right here in Kakariko Village, can we not? I've already been searching through Hyrule Castle Town, and there's not a thing there, I can guarantee it. I guess that's why I was so intent on coming with you today."

I nodded. "Graveyard seems like a likely place."

"Too likely," Adarin replied, shaking his head. "I'm not going to lie, I don't think these locations will be anywhere near the same ones as the temples. I have a feeling they're going to be completely random. Can you name something in this town that you feel is out of place? That, perhaps, something may be located?"

"The windmill is a good place to start," I said, laughing. "A crazy old guy lives there, playing a song all day long. Maybe we could go ask him some questions."

"We can't exactly walk up to him and ask him if he's seen a slice of the triforce – which, by the way, don't tell anyone about. You can never tell who to trust."

I nodded in response. "Of course."

"Okay, so, when do you want to get started?" He asked. "You're the expert on this town. Show me there."

"Alright," I replied, standing up. "I will. But you'll have to wait."

"Wait? Why?"

"Because I need a bath, I need to change clothes, and I seriously need to rest for a minute. Do you have any idea how much information I've just obtained?"

Adarin laughed and nodded. "Mind if I get a bath after you, actually?" He asked, peering up at me. "Relaxing sounds kind of nice right now."

"No problem, I'll let you know when it's open."

I found my bath only partially relaxing, seeing that I could only think of my dreams and the fate of Hyrule resting on mine and a random librarian's shoulders. We were actually going to go out and look for these Triforce pieces – such a thing was hard to realize. I smiled a little in the bath, in spite of myself, and soon got out, feeling a little dizzy from the heat. Apparently the fire was a little too hot.

I got dressed and went down to Aeli's room, brushing my wet hair. "Bath's open," I muttered into the doorway, and soon, Adarin was out. "I warn you, though, the water's a little too hot."

"Alright," he said, smiling, "I like hot water."

As he got into the bath, I sat down at the kitchen table with my journal, pouring over what I could write into it now. And suddenly, out of nowhere, Rynine appeared, her face red and angry and hot.

"What are you getting at?" She demanded, her eyes flaming. "You already have a marriage proposal, from Asri. What are you getting at taking him, too?"

"I'm not taking him. He's my friend, Rynine." I found it odd that I was defending myself over Adarin. Over a guy that had "prophetic dreams". Of course, I did too, so I guess I couldn't criticize.

"Rynine, really. It's not like that."

"It's not like that? You guys laugh and talk and chat like a married couple already, and I'm sorry, but I love him!"

"You love him?" I fought laughter and snapped my journal shut, shaking my head. "Sweetie, you don't even know what love is."

"No, I love him, I love Adarin, he's the most attractive man that's ever stepped foot in this house, and I want to be with him! Back off! You have your own proposal!"

"As do you, Rynine," Nalem spat as she entered the kitchen. Her accent was miraculously gone when Adarin wasn't around. "You have marriage proposals seven times over. It just happens that Rileth accepted hers."

"I haven't accepted anything. I'm not marrying that man, or any man, for that matter."

"You have. You've been arranged from birth to marry Phiasri. And Rynine, you can find a man anytime you want! Adarin is mine! He may be a little younger than me, but he needs a real woman to support him. A real woman to hold him up."

"A real woman," I snorted into my tea in laughter. I thought back to what Adarin had said earlier that day and giggled a little. 'I don't know how much longer I can handle your sisters.'

"What's that supposed to mean? You already have a man. You're not a real woman, if you're cheating on Asri like that. You already have your future planned for you, where I don't!"

"No one is cheating on Asri! I'm not even with Asri! I hate him, to be completely honest with you, and I'm not even with Adarin! Both of you are blowing this out of proportion!"

"Well, we may be blowing it out of proportion, but you were blowing something that wasn't Asri's last night," Rynine spat. My jaw dropped in surprise, and I shook my head, retreating back to my room. I didn't care to fight with my sisters at this time.

To my surprise, Adarin, now bathed and fully dressed, was sitting on my bed when I got there. "I'm sorry," he said, smiling slightly, "but the kitchen was on the way to Aeli's room, and I had to avoid that situation at all costs."

"Can't say I blame you," I said, sitting next to him and shaking my head. "Did you hear all of that?" My face flushed again, this time in embarrassment as to what he might have just heard.

"Unfortunately, yes. Seems like you've been doing a little 'cheating' lately, Miss Rileth. Even though I don't remember these events."

"Neither do I."

We both laughed, and Aeli entered the room, as if on cue.

"Rileth, I'm tired," he said, rubbing his little eyes as if he'd been up for nights and nights in a row. I smiled at him and nodded.

"Alright, Aeli, we'll go to bed. I hate to chase you out, Adarin, but we have quite an adventure waiting for us in the morning, as it is. I'll see you then?" I said as he stood, making his way to the doorway.

"I'll see you then, if I don't get murdered by your sisters on the way to Aeli's room." Aeli let out a great snicker as he climbed into bed.

"I like him."

Me too, I thought, but instead of saying so, I instead said, "Goodnight, Adarin."

"Goodnight, Miss Rileth."


	5. Chapter Four: Brother, My Brother

Once again, I stood amidst the dark clouds, I watched every corner of Hyrule invaded by evil, and I watched a man's face appea

Once again, I stood amidst the dark clouds, I watched every corner of Hyrule invaded by evil, and I watched a man's face appear in the clouds. I stared at the face, knowing it was Ganondorf this time around, and he opened his great, grey mouth and consumed me. Suddenly I was standing in the Temple of Time, just before the opened Door of Time, and a man, clad in green, descended the steps and ran past me. A feeling of peace overcame me as he ran through the door. And suddenly, time seemed to freeze inside the Temple of Time. Everything went a bright white. The three stones disappeared before my very eyes. Finally, a boy, clad in the same green as before, came jogging down from the steps as the Door of Time closed…

Suddenly, I was awake. Damn.

"How far did you get?" I heard, and Aeli was facing me in the bed, his eyes large and questioning again. I felt as though I was experiencing a form of dejavu.

"A little farther." I reached past him and opened my bedside table, retrieving my trusty dream journal and propping it open on my legs. I flipped past all of the pages I'd written, finally finding a blank page and writing down what I'd dreamed of this time. I understood what it meant, however, now that I'd read the book – I simply watched time turn back to normal, after Link had defeated Ganondorf. A part of me was incredibly disappointed that I couldn't watch Link's explorations throughout Hyrule, his true defeat of Ganondorf, but I pushed it aside.

Just as I snapped my book shut and placed it back in the bedside table, I heard a knock on the door. "Rileth?"

"Yes?"

"Adarin insists on you getting up. He says hurry up. Apparently he sees just how lazy you can really be," Nalem's voice came, and she laughed once she was finished. "Ah, anyway, I already cooked breakfast."

I shrugged my shoulders in place in bed; I was sure she thought that by cooking breakfast this morning, she'd create a false image that she took care of me. But that didn't bother me all that much, for some reason. I rose out of bed, threw a dress on, and proceeded into the kitchen, where Nalem, Rynine, and Adarin had all just started on breakfast. Aeli trailed behind me, and I fixed both his and my plates. We sat and began to eat.

"You ready to go?" Adarin asked almost as soon as I'd seated myself. "You slept kind of late."

"Are you going to let me eat breakfast?" I asked amusedly, eating my first bite. "Because really, I've got to have my energy."

It seems as though as soon as I opened my mouth to speak to Adarin, Rynine's glare became more and more intense. She hated that he and I were friends. I wondered how long she would be obsessed with him, or if would simply another day thing. It would be interesting if she liked him the entire time he was here.

I finished my breakfast and placed my dish on the counter, where a pile was forming, and I was about to take them all outside when Adarin grabbed my arm. "No," he said, "we don't have time. Cleanliness can wait until we get back with some information, or maybe… you know…"

I turned to Adarin and shook my head – he seemed a little obsessed. Of course, I would have most likely been too, if I'd been having these dreams for three years with nobody to talk to about it. I left the plates on the counter and turned towards the door, Adarin following closely in my wake. "We'll be back soon," I called to Rynine and Nalem, who were glaring at each other, obviously waiting until I left to rant about me. I didn't care.

Stepping out into Kakariko Village and seeing just how bright it was outside made me realize just how early it really was. The sun had just risen. I glanced over at Adarin, an eyebrow raised, and he shrugged his shoulders. Surely he didn't wake up this early every morning; most sane people didn't.

"Were you just that excited?" I asked, and he didn't respond. Instead, he pointed at the obvious windmill from where we stood, indicating our apparent task to complete.

"Alright," I said, wandering in that direction. He expected me to lead, but there he was, at least a full two steps ahead of me, simply turning around to make sure I was still there. I began to wonder why he waited for me to get up in the first place.

"So I've been thinking," he finally said, tucking his hands in his pockets. "What if the pieces of the Triforce of Courage were all in one place?" I waited for him to continue, my expression curious. "I mean, in my dreams I never particularly scatter all across Hyrule, which would be convenient, so…"

"But if our dreams mean something," I said, slowly, cautiously, calmly, "wouldn't it tell us exactly where all of these triforce pieces were?"

"Well, yeah," he agreed, "but maybe we haven't dreamt of that part yet. And what are we supposed to do, anyway? Sit around and wait for Ganondorf to come back?"

I understood what he meant, and instead of pushing the issue any further, I simply followed him towards the windmill, where hopefully some answers would lie. We walked in silence, each consumed by our own thoughts.

What else could we do, besides look for the pieces? I figured maybe we could look for any indication that Ganondorf had risen, but then again, where would that get us? I most certainly had never had any kind of experience in combat, and Adarin certainly looked as though he'd never had any experience; I watched his arms move back and forth as he walked, his skinny, underdeveloped arms. I imagined Ganondorf snapping them in two, and shook my head at myself. Impossible. Neither of us could take him on alone, or even together.

"Adarin," I said, as he kept walking, not looking back, "how do we know what we're going after? I mean, what happens after we get all of these pieces, or even after we get one of them? What if Ganondorf returns and just… annihilates us?"

He laughed. "Like I said before, Rileth… it's the best we can do. Wouldn't you rather take the risk for the sake of Hyrule?"

Burned. I followed him in silence, feeling a little guilty for worrying about myself when all of Hyrule was in possible danger. Of course he was right. I should have wanted to take the risk for the sake of Hyrule, but it didn't keep it from being a little scary.

Instead of finding ways to protest our 'impending doom', as I saw it, I followed him to the windmill, climbed up the steps, and entered without another word. There stood who I called "the windmill guy", as I didn't know him at all. I had only seen him in passing, and he always had that instrument in hand, always playing, always playing.

"Hey," Adarin said, and the guy glanced up, still playing, as usual. "Hey, we're here to ask you about a boy-"

"In green?"

Adarin and I froze; were we actually finding a lead? "Yes, in green… a boy in green. His name was Link, and he had a-"

"An ocarina," the man finished. The possibility of someone, here, in this very town, sharing my dreams, struck me as crazy. Adarin seemed to think the same thing, as he looked over at me as if he couldn't believe I hadn't checked this lead before.

"Yes, an ocarina. What do you know about him?"

"I know that he came here and played his stupid song, and then the well dried up, and it rained for days. I hate that kid. If I see him again, I'll… I'll…"

Both Adarin and I froze again, blinking at the man before us. What was he talking about?

"Wait, what song?" Adarin said, still as confused as ever.

"My song," he said, "and with that ocarina he had, he messed up my whole windmill. That stupid, blue ocarina."

"How old was he?" I asked stupidly; Adarin glared at me.

"Around ten."

I watched Adarin. Was he going to question this man any further, or was he going to check around the windmill for a triforce piece? I shuffled my feet on the dusty floor as he thanked the man and turned and left.

"Apparently the deeds he did as a child," he said once we were outside, "weren't undone, seeing that he was returned to that time, anyway."

I nodded, as if I knew all along, when in fact he was telling me new information. "Is it possible," I started, watching Adarin with caution, "that he actually hasn't left yet? Or is he gone already?"

"I've already checked all over Kokiri Forest, like I said. No boy in green. And I'm sure that's where he'd stay."

"What about his fairy?"

"Fairy?"

"Well, in my dreams I always saw him with a fairy… and Kokiris always have fairies, from what I read. Is it possible for us to talk to his fairy?"

Adarin seemed dumbfounded that I even came up with that idea. He most certainly had never noticed, or regarded, the fairy at Link's side. I smiled in spite of myself; perhaps I was actually useful.

"Well, I guess that's the real place to start," he said, "but are you willing to leave Kakariko Village, or are you going to insist on taking care of your older sister?"

"I'll leave. Just let me go gather my things first."

Apparently, my siblings weren't too happy about me paying a trip to Kokiri Forest. I took most of my potion ingredients with me, along with a small bowl, and tucked it all into a sack that belonged to my mother. Nalem and Rynine didn't even say goodbye, they simply glared at me as I walked out the door.

Aeli, however, begged me to stay. "Please don't leave me with them," he said, and for a moment, I was tempted to take him with me. "Please, stay here."

"I can't," I told him, and I hugged him, kissed him, told him goodbye, and with that, I was gone.

Adarin and Growls waited outside for me; we had a long journey ahead of us, so he brought along bread, meats, and a few other things to last us on our trip. He smiled nervously at me, as if he was afraid I'd retreat back into the house without another word. However, I stuck to my plan before and followed him right on our of Kakariko Village, into Hyrule Field.

I prayed we would reach Kokiri Forest by nightfall; I knew about the monsters that appeared in Hyrule Field by night. However, as the sun made its way across the sky, I could tell that this would be unlikely. The sun was beginning to set, and though the forest was now in view, I seriously doubted we would make it there in time.

"Adarin," I said, tugging at his sleeve, "do you know about the monsters that lurk here by night…?"

He watched me for a moment and shook his head. "You know, I don't think I've ever even been here at night before," he said as though it were just an interesting topic of conversation. Instead of discussing it any further, I left it alone, and eventually forgot about it. The idea didn't pop in my head again until I heard the wolf's howl – an indication that it was definitely nighttime.

I heard a strange noise behind me. Freezing in place, I watched Adarin continue as if nothing was wrong, and slowly, I heard this noise approach me. "Adarin…" I said slowly and nervously, and he didn't stop or turn around, instead he replied, "What?"

"Adarin…"

"What?" Finally, he turned around, and I watched his face drain color by the moonlight.

"What is it, Adarin? What's behind me?"

"It's… it's…"

And suddenly, I heard a giggle, and I turned, only to see a big, skeletal arm lifting up to hit me, lighting up in the moonlight, and I cried out, feeling doom upon me, lifting my arms high above my head, and…

Suddenly, the skeleton was in pieces in the ground, disappearing into a purple mist.

"You really shouldn't travel without protection."

At first, I thought the voice was Adarin's, though it was deeper and stranger, as if he'd come from another place, but I ignored it and turned to him, falling into his arms in fear. "Thank you so much…" I said, still completely certain it was Adarin.

"And you also shouldn't grab onto people you don't know. I swear, you people traveling in the moonlight, without thinking first… you give us Hylians a bad name."

And I opened my eyes, only to stare into two red ones. Wait. Adarin's eyes were green. I jumped away from him, only to see a taller, muscular man with red hair and tanned skin. He was wielding a sword in his right hand, a green shield in his left hand.

"Who are you?" I choked out. He watched me for a moment, and Adarin, behind me, was frozen in place just the same. For some reason, this was almost scarier than the skeleton following us.

"Move out of the way," he suddenly said, and I did as was told, only to barely avoid the blade of his sword, coming down on another skeleton figure just behind me. I whipped around to watch him tear the skeleton in two with his sword with such ease; I saw the scars on his arms and realized how many battles he must have fought previously.

"Thank you," I managed to whisper as the skeleton disappeared into another purple mist.

"Stop thanking me," he said, "And keep going for shelter, or else you're going to have to keep thanking me until I stop saving you."

With that, Adarin and I ran through the trees leading up to Kokiri Forest, this man behind us jogging, batting off skeletons left and right. Who was this man, and why was he protecting us? Suddenly, we came upon a tunnel made from a tree trunk, and we ran through it, approaching a bridge, crossing it, and entering into the forbidden Kokiri Forest.

"Keep your mouth shut," the man said, sheathing his sword. "You'll have to stay quiet to make it through here alive. These forests are sacred and deeply protected. Don't underestimate the Kokiri children."

I glanced over at Adarin, who was, to tell the truth, glaring at this man who was now following us. I honestly felt thankful for the man, but Adarin apparently felt differently, as he grabbed the man's arm and twisted him to face him.

"Jolich," he said, "where in the hell have you been?"

"Did I not just tell you to shut up?" The man now identified as Jolich hissed at him, prying his arm out of Adarin's grip. "Keep your mouth shut if you want to live."

"I could care less about the Kokiri children right now. Where in the hell have you been? Mom and Dad went insane looking for you; they went searching all throughout Hyrule. And now they're held captive by the Gerudo, did you know that, Jolich?"

"Of course I did, and I just told you to shut the hell up. Do you understand that?"

Suddenly, it all made sense.

They were brothers.

Jolich made his way directly to the left, hopped up a platform and indicated for us to follow. The two of us followed closely behind him, though I had some difficulty climbing onto the platform. Adarin paused to help me up, though Jolich barely glanced back to check if we were still there. He began to climb quickly up a wall of vines, and I simply stood there, confused as to how in the world I would follow. Adarin made his way over to the vines and climbed, with some difficulty, but I didn't even know where to begin.

"Hey guys?" I hissed in a loud whisper, "How exactly am I supposed to do this?"

"Grab the vine," Adarin said, shaking his head at me somewhat amusedly, "and climb."

"I can't!" I said, and without another word, Jolich hopped back down. He stood, towering over me, looking down at me as though he were angry; his red eyes seemed to light up in the moonlight.

"Get on my back," he said, "and you have to make sure you don't get in the way like this anymore." With that, he leaned down and I cautiously and nervously climbed onto his back. And suddenly, as soon as I'd achieved a decent grip on his back, he was climbing the vines up to the top, as I was having difficulty holding on. As we reached the top, he let me down and I stumbled around, confusedly, as he continued on through the tree-trunk tunnel without another word to either of us.

"Adarin," I whispered as the redhead disappeared into the tunnel, "why didn't you tell me you had a brother?"

"To be honest, I thought I didn't have one," he replied, shaking his head. "I thought for sure he was dead. I tried to convince my parents of that, but they searched all over Hyrule Field anyway, and the Gerudos caught them searching their hideout. Bad mistake. Now they're prisoners out that way."

"Why haven't you tried to free them?" I asked him, my expression serious.

"You think I actually could free them?" He laughed. "Jolich always had the athletic ability of the family, let me tell you, but I always had the brains. I went by the hideout a few times, but the best I could do was to hide myself. I can't get them out without force."

"I said shut up," I heard from up ahead; Jolich apparently thought we were being too loud.

"Why are we entering here anyway?" I asked Adarin, and he shrugged.

"I don't know, but I feel safer following him than trying to fend for myself out there."

"What are you doing here?" Jolich suddenly asked, his red eyes turning to look at us. "Why are you here?"

"The dreams," Adarin said, and Jolich simply stood, without a word, as if he understood what Adarin meant.

"Do you have them too?" I asked before I could stop myself, sounding much too childlike suddenly. I sounded like Aeli in the morning, after I finished having another dream.

"Yes, he does, I'm sure," Adarin said, "or else he wouldn't have left home."

"Why are you here?" Jolich repeated, his arms folded across his chest.

"We're looking for Link's fairy," I said softly, watching Jolich's expression for any indication in change. "Maybe she could give us some information on what's going to be happening with Ganond-"

"Leave it alone," Jolich simply said, watching both of us seriously. "Leave it alone. Don't try to prevent Ganondorf from coming back. There's nothing either of you can do."

"What have you dreamed?" Adarin asked, stepping forward into a clearing of the trees above, into a sliver of moonlight. "What have you been dreaming? How much do you know? How much can you tell us?"

"I can't tell you anything," Jolich said, "and if I could, I wouldn't be interested in telling you." With that, he turned and continued through the Lost Woods, navigating it far too effectively to have been here for the first time.

"We should be careful," Adarin said cautiously. "I hear those who enter the Lost Woods turn into monsters…"


End file.
